No Response From White House To Plea For More FEMA Aid For Lee County

A letter from Lee's Board of County Commissioners to the White House, sent over two weeks ago, asking for more flexibility and timelier response from FEMA.

WGCU News

Originally published on November 6, 2017 3:00 pm

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It’s now more than two weeks since Lee County’s Board of Commissioners sent a letter to the White House and U.S. Senators regarding the slow help from the Federal Emergency Management Agency after Hurricane Irma. There’s been no response from FEMA or the White House.

Commissioners sent letters to the White House and to lawmakers from Florida, asking for more flexibility and quicker responses from FEMA Irma recovery.

The letter from commissioners goes on to ask for additional funding for Flood Mitigation Assistance, which would grant money for long-term solutions to prevent flooding.

It also asks FEMA to extend the period of debris collection and increase the amount of money the county is reimbursed for picking up storm debris. Commissioners are asking for 90 percent reimbursement instead of the 75 percent the county currently gets.

U.S. Democratic Sen. Bill Nelson of Florida said this is a common challenge throughout the state.

“There’s a big fight elsewhere in Florida about the cost that counties had contracted for with debris removal companies," Nelson said. "And, now the companies want to charge more because there’s so much work.”

Just this week, Nelson and Sen. Marco Rubio sent a letter to FEMA’s administrator, asking for housing help for Floridians who remain displaced.

Lee County officials said they’re still waiting on the White House to respond.